Read the latest articles from Popular Science (Page 433)

The Downtown Manhattan skyline stands shrouded in a reddish haze as a result of Canadian wildfires on June 6, 2023 in New York City. Over 100 wildfires are burning in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia and Quebec resulting in air quality health alerts for the Adirondacks, Eastern Lake Ontario, Central New York, and Western New York.
Climate Change

Wildfire smoke is choking the eastern United States

Nearly 100 million people across numerous states are affected by the dangerous conditions.

Hand holding a cupcake with purple frosting, sprinkles and a birthday candle.
Life Skills

How to make sure you never miss someone’s birthday

Use these apps and features to help you remember all those special occasions.

NASA Perseverance rover being readied indoors for launch for the Mars 2020 mission
Mars

A spacecraft engineer’s wisdom from Mars 2020 and a disaster-stricken island

'The Space Mechanic' illustrates the importance of taking risks, close to home and millions of miles away.

Why scientists have a hard time getting money to study the root causes of outbreaks
Diseases

Why scientists have a hard time getting money to study the root causes of outbreaks

Government and groups that award grants to scientists favor research that’s high tech and treatment oriented rather than studies that seek to understand why contagions leap from animals to people.

A monkey laying on a tree smiling.
Wildlife

Super semen could be one reason why primates evolved to masturbate

Self-pleasure occurs all across the animal kingdom, but it’s still unclear why primates in particular evolved autosexual behavior.

Apple iPhone icons showing one text message alert
AI

Duck yeah, Apple’s next autocorrect update makes it easier to swear

Unfiltered expletives are coming to iOS 17 this fall.

Factory emitting pollution at sunset
Renewables

675 million people still didn’t have access to electricity in 2021

A new report from the UN on Sustainable Development Goals progress shows the world is 'off track.'

NASA's Psyche probe should blast off to an asteroid later in 2023.
Deep Space

NASA’s journey to a strange metal asteroid should finally begin in October

The Psyche mission has a launch date again, after software problems and COVID-era delays.

Apple Vision Pro being worn by someone typing
Engineering

Apple released a ‘spatial computer.’ Here’s what that means.

It looks like something out of "Minority Report."

An entrance to the Dinaledi Chamber of the Rising Star Cave system, part of the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site near Johannesburg, South Africa. Newly found grave sites and wall engravings have led a team of archeologists to reevaluate the meaning-making capacity of an early human ancestor, Homo naledi.
Archaeology

Extinct human cousins may have beaten us to inventing burial rituals

New preprint studies continue to spark the debate surrounding which species was the first to practice purposeful burial.

Computer illustration of ISS with docket spacecraft
Technology

The ISS’s latest delivery includes space plants and atmospheric lightning monitors

SpaceX's Dragon craft autonomously docked with the ISS early Tuesday morning.

A doctor examines a chest x-ray.
Cancer

A daily pill could cut lung cancer deaths in half, new study shows

The results of a new clinical trial are a ‘momentous achievement’ in the fight against the world’s leading cause of cancer death.

A badger in a forest on a rainy day.
Wildlife

Air quality monitoring stations could help track and preserve threatened species

The air can have traces of the plants, fungi, and animals that live nearby.

Two people in workout clothes putting food and supplements into a blender to make their own pre-workout
Fitness & Exercise

What science says about popular pre-workout ingredients

The good, the meh, and the uh-oh in common fitness supplements.

The mpox virus. 3D illustration.
Life Skills

What you can do to prevent the spread of mpox

Getting the mpox vaccine is only the first step to prevent a new health crisis.

Lionfish are now threatening ecosystems and livelihoods in Brazil
Ocean

Lionfish are now threatening ecosystems and livelihoods in Brazil

An uninvited guest has arrived south of the Caribbean.

Loxley Browne (right) CEO and founder of Club Athena in California with Akshaya Koramutla, the Student Advisory Board President.
Engineering

This STEM club for girls turned a real BMW into a sweet racing simulator

The 1997 BMW 318i convertible is now a life-sized video game.

Woman wearing Apple Vision Pro AR headset
Internet

Here’s a look at Apple’s first augmented reality headset

A round-up of the news from Apple's WWDC.

An elk grazing in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.
Land

The role of people in preserving nature, according to America’s National Parks docuseries

Carnivorous plants, turquoise-waters, spawning coral reefs, and more need our help.

Go easier on your body with one of the best ergonomic desks.
Home

The best ergonomic desks

Make the most out of your workday with the best ergonomic desk—one that fits you just right.